Andrew
Goodman was a 21-year-old Jewish anthropology student from New York who
went to Mississippi in 1964 to help register black voters. He joined
thousands of activists in Freedom Summer, a non-violent challenge to the
institutionalized racism of the U.S. South. Goodman was one of the many
people who helped bring King’s dream one step closer to reality. But
Goodman’s idealism and dedication to justice cost him his life. He was
murdered by a white supremacist mob in Philadelphia, Mississippi together
with two other activists, the black Mississippian James Chaney (age 21)
and a second white New-Yorker, Michael Schwerner (age 24).

Last
Thursday, Goodman’s mother received a Civil Rights Award from the
Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism. Rev. Jesse Jackson spoke at
the event, which commemorated Martin Luther King Jr.

But
not all is well. A few years ago I participated in another non-violent
challenge to institutionalized racism, also called Freedom Summer in
recognition of that inspiring historical moment. The new Freedom Summer
was organized by the
International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and took us
to occupied Palestine, where we sought to stand shoulder to shoulder with
Palestinians organizing non-violent resistance to the Israeli occupation,
and to bear witness to their struggle for justice and freedom.

Like
any serious challenge to racism, the International Solidarity Movement’s
campaigns are not without danger. An American ISM volunteer, Rachel
Corrie, 22, was crushed by an Israeli bulldozer while protecting a
Palestinian home from demolition. A British volunteer, Tom Hurndall, 21,
died after being shot in the head by a sniper while trying to escort
Palestinian children to safety in Rafah. Israeli protesters Gil Na'amati,
Itai Levinsky, and Jonathan Pollak have been seriously wounded by Israeli
soldiers during demonstrations. Many have suffered gunshot wounds,
beatings and arrests.

Jews
like Goodman played an important role in a Civil Rights movement of the
‘60s, one that has been told many times. Although I don’t have statistics,
I can attest that our Freedom Summer was attended by a significant number
of American Jews as well. If Goodman were alive today, I have no doubt
that he too would be going to Palestine, to stand for the same values he
stood for in Mississippi in 1964.

Yet
the award was presented to Goodman’s mother in a peculiar place --
Israel’s embassy in Washington.

Goodman’s commitment to civil rights was honored by a state that disallows
inter-religious marriages, refuses residence to foreign spouses of Arab
citizens, and reserves development budgets overwhelmingly for its Jewish
citizens.

Goodman’s commitment to fight racism was honored by a state that considers
20% of its mothers “a demographic threat.”

Goodman’s commitment to fight for freedom was honored by a state where an
Arab must be vetted by the security services before he or she can teach in
an Arab high school.

Goodman’s sacrifice was honored by the representative of the state
responsible for killing Rachel Corrie and Tom Hurndall.

Goodman’s commitment to non-violence was honored by a state that defines
non-violence as a “security threat” and routinely deports Americans
suspected of committing it.

That’s
a perk; Palestinian non-violent activists are treated far worse. Israeli
forces fire tear gas, rubber and live bullets and concussion grenades at
unarmed protestors. Israeli undercover agents have been caught on tape
throwing rocks at Israeli forces to create excuses to firing on protestors
(Haaretz, April 29, 2005; see also "The
Palestinian Gandhi," by Ran HaCohen) Israeli forces kill non-violent
protesters. For example, during a non-violent protest in Bidu in February
2004, in which the ISM participated, Israeli soldiers killed three
Palestinian protesters, Zacharia Mahmoud Eid, 26, Mohamed Rayan, 26, and
Mohamed Saleh Bedwan. 70 year old Abu Nabil Abu Eid also died from a heart
attack after inhaling excessive tear-gas. Israel’s security forces have
wounded hundreds of protesters, harassed and collectively punished
villages such as Budrus and Bilin that dared to protest non-violently, and
arrested hundreds of protesters, including nonviolent protest leaders.
Muhammed Awad from Budrus is an example. He was deemed a security threat
and put in administrative detention (the Israeli version of legal limbo).
He explained the threat he poses to the state better than anyone: "Instead
of the fence, my friends and I managed to establish bridges of trust
between us and the Jews," he said to Judge Agassi. "We let the
world understand that there can be coexistence between us and the Jews."
(Haas in Haaretz, November 10, 2004)

This
is the state that Jackson agreed to honor and to associate with the memory
of Martin Luther King Jr. by accepting to participate and speak at this
award ceremony.

What
is the role of the
Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism in this disgrace? No great
mystery here. This is an organization that sees, hears and speaks no evil
with regards to Israel. Their general commitment to social justice and
“action” is at best limited to the safely uncontroversial. On its website
you can find various “issue packets”. On the crisis in Argentina, for
example, their package contains information exclusively about Jews. I
guess all the other struggles that are taking place in Argentina are just
out of luck. What business has this parochial group to honor deeds of the
sort it neither advocates nor apparently cares about? Is it because
Goodman was Jewish? This “Action Center” is using Goodman’s name, hoping
that Goodman’s anti-racist halo would rub off on them, and on Israel,
thanks to Goodman’s Jewish ancestry. They should be told that Jewish
participation in solidarity against racism is not a credit line they can
now freely tap. Those who are today defending the cause of racism and
discrimination should not bask in the unearned glow of the sacrifices made
by heroes such as Andrew Goodman. They have little in common with him.

But
who will tell them that? Not Jesse Jackson, who is now merchandizing the
struggle for civil rights. Jackson is today allowing that anti-racist
legacy to be used to legitimize institutionalized racism and violence.
Thus he ingratiates himself with the Zionist movers and shakers who
dispense campaign money and respectability in the Democratic Party.

Shame!

Gabriel
Ash
is an activist and writer who writes because the pen is sometimes mightier
than the sword and sometimes not. He welcome comments at:
g.a.evildoer@gmail.com.